Nigeria in 1min: Economic, Business & Financial Headlines – 070617

PROSHARE ECONOMYMerchandise Trade Grew By 0.1% - Positive Trade Balance Due to Rising Exports & Falling Imports - Total exports for the period under review stood at ₦3,005.9 billion, while total imports stood at ₦2,286.5 billion. The total value of Nigeria’s merchandise trade at the end of Q1, 2017 was ₦5,292.4 billion. Source Proshare Read More

Nigeria seeks approval from lawmakers for $1.5 bln loan for states' projects - Nigeria's government is seeking approval from lawmakers to borrow $1.5 billion from international lenders to fund projects in a number of the country's states, a letter by the acting president said on Tuesday. Source Reuters Read More

FG to build $1bn ICT coy in Nigeria - Osinbajo - The Federal Government has said it would build a $1bn Information Communication and Technology (ICT) company in the country to boost indigenous technology in Africa, expected to be the first on the Continent. Source Daily Trust Read More

Senate: 28-30% Interest Rate Hurting SMEs, Economy - The Senate has lamented that the current regime of high interest rates; between 28-30 per cent for the private sector, have continued to place a major burden on business investments, thereby negatively impacting the survival of Nigerian businesses. Source Thisday Read More

Akeredolu Sends N169bn Appropriation Bill to Ondo Assembly - The Ondo State Governor, Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN) on Tuesday sent 2017 Appropriation Bill of N169.720 billion to the state House of Assembly. Source Thisday Read More

Nigerian carriers lost 60% regional, international passengers- Capacity constraints have clipped the wings of Nigerian airlines on the regional and international fronts with their operations reducing by over 60 per cent from 2016 till date; checks by Daily Trust have shown. Source Daily Trust Read More

World Bank raises forecast for Nigeria’s economic growth to 1.2% - The World Bank yesterday upgraded its forecast for Nigeria’s economic growth to 1.2 per cent for 2017, citing improved oil production due to decreased militant activities. Source Vanguard Read More

FG earns $2bn from Onne free zone in 6 years – Umana - The Federal Government of Nigeria realised a whopping $2 billion (N611 billion) as revenue from the operation of the Onne Oil and Gas Free Zone through the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) within the last six years. Source Daily Trust Read More

Cross River signs trade agreement with China - In his bullish drive for investment, Governor Ben Ayade of Cross River State, Monday, signed a partnership agreement with his counterpart in Shaanxi Province in China, Hu Heping, to bolster the injection of capital for business in the state. Source Guardian Read More

FG’ll begin predictable budget year in 2018 – Akabueze - The Federal Government has said it will in 2018 commence a predictable budget year that will enable the executive and the legislature to check the delays that usually follow the budget process. Source Punch Read More

20 states owe pensions, salaries – BudgIT - Twenty States in Nigeria are owing workers and pensioners salaries and entitlements ranging from one to 36 months, a BudgIT nationwide survey has shown. Source Punch Read More

Africa Can’t Grow Unless it Tackles Power Challenge, Says Dangote - The President/Chief Executive of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has urged African leaders to address as a matter of urgency, the problem of power generation and transmission if the continent wants to grow like others in the western world. Source Thisday Read More

PROSHARE REGULATORSFINRA T+2 rules approved - In May 2017, in Regulatory Notice 17-19, FINRA announced the SEC approval of a variety of its proposed rule amendments relating to the upcoming move of the U.S. securities markets to the T+2 settlement cycle. Source Proshare Read More

PROSHARE MARKETSCBN Injects $190m into FX Market; Wholesale Segment Gets $100m as SMEs Receive $50m Boost - Relentless in its push to achieve convergence of rates in the interbank and Bureau de Change segments of the foreign exchange market, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Monday, June 5, 2017, injected another sum of $190 million into the inter-bank market. Source Proshare Read More

NSE Launches X-Academy - The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on Thursday, June 1, 2017, organised a media launch for X-Academy, a knowledge-platform designed to provide education services to individuals for better understanding of various aspects of the capital markets. Source Proshare Read More

June 2017 FGN Savings Bond Opens June 5th - This is to notify you of the FGN Savings Bonds Offer opening today Kindly find the features below, and download the subscription form here. The Offer closes Friday, June 09, 2017. Source Proshare Read More

Further Liberalization of the Inter-Bank Foreign Exchange (FX) Market - The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in its efforts to further develop the Nigerian FX market, continues to embark on initiatives that serve to improve the FX market structure. Source Proshare Read More

Stock Market Halts 9-Day Gaining Streak as NSEASI Dips by -1.16% - Equities market closed today on a negative note, as NSE ASI depreciated by -1.16% to close at 32,200.38 basis points, as against +3.85% appreciation recorded previously. Its Year-to-Date (YTD) returns currently stands at +19.82%. Source Proshare Read More

MSCI raises Nigeria's weighting, standalone decision still ahead - Following the recent rebalancing of the MSCI Frontier Index, Nigeria’s weighting in the index increased to 7.9% from 6.5%. Source Proshare Read More

Nigerian Breweries, GTBank join Dangote Cement in Trillion Naira stock club - Three stocks, from three different sectors of the Nigerian economy now have market values in excess of N1 trillion each, making them the most valuable companies on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). Source BUSINESSDAY Read More

NERC proposes monthly electricity tariff review - The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) is set to cut the minor review period of Multi Year Tariff Order (MYTO) methodology from six months to either monthly or quarterly. Source Daily Trust Read More

Senate C’tee: Nigeria Loses $2.5bn Annually to Gas Flaring - The Senate Committee on Gas has decried the loss of over $2.5 billion to gas flaring annually from an estimated two billion standard cubic feet of flared gas, which accounts for about 19 percent of total gas, flared globally. Source Thisday Read More

PROSHARE BUSINESSNigeria's Business Climate and Ease of Doing Business Initiatives - Nigeria is viewed by many as a country with enormous opportunities and business potentials. The sheer size of the country’s population, human and natural resources as well as its diverse culture place the country in a class of potentially great nations. Source Proshare Read More

South Africa Has Second Recession in Eight Years - South Africa’s economy fell into a recession for the first time since 2009 after it contracted for a second straight quarter in the first three months of the year as all bar two industries shrank. Source Bloomberg Read More

Egypt’s Forex Reserves Surpass Nigeria for First Time in Six Years - Egypt’s foreign-exchange reserves have overtaken Nigeria’s for the first time since 2011. The North African country, which floated the pound and secured international monetary funding in November, has seen overseas holdings of local-currency bonds soar to $7.5 billion from just $100 million earlier. Source Bloomberg Read More

Biggest Mideast Bank Is Cheapest in Four Years as Crisis Swirls- Qatar National Bank QPSC, the biggest lender in the Middle East, is trading at the cheapest relative to emerging-market peers since 2013 as a regional political storm engulfs its home country. Source Bloomberg Read More

Australia's Annual GDP Slows Less Than Expected; Currency Surges - Australia’s economy slowed in the first quarter, constrained by weak net exports and a drop in housing investment. The currency jumped as annual growth beat expectations. Source Bloomberg Read More

Gold Makes Run Toward $1,300 as Risk Flares From U.K. to Mideast - Gold’s taking aim at $1,300 an ounce. The metal has rallied to the highest since November as investors position themselves for the outcome of the U.K. election and potential drama of former FBI Director James Comey’s testimony, while also tracking tensions in the Middle East. Source Bloomberg Read More

South African recession puts fiscal targets at risk: Treasury - South Africa's negative economic growth is a risk to fiscal targets and puts pressure on the government to intensify growth programmes as a matter of urgency, the Treasury said on Tuesday. Source Reuters Read More

Kenya government to guarantee $750 mln in Kenya Airways debt - Kenya will offer $750 million in guarantees to Kenya Airways' existing creditors to help the heavily-indebted carrier secure financing from other sources to complete its recovery, a cabinet document showed on Tuesday. Source Reuters Read More

PROSHARE TECHNOLOGYEtisalat, Glo, Airtel owe FG billions of naira in levies – NITDA DG - Etisalat, Globacom and Airtel Nigeria Limited may be owing the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) millions of naira as part of their mandatory levies from their annual profits, a House of Representatives panel heard yesterday. Source Daily Trust Read More